Coffee beverages are widely consumed throughout the world and are usually prepared from pure roasted coffee. It has been known for some time, however, that roasted coffee can be combined with other types of roasted vegetable material to yield a composition that can produce a brewed beverage comparable to 100% coffee beverages. Such materials as roasted chicory, roasted grains (e.g. wheat) have been commercially used in combination with roasted coffee. These composite products are able to be produced at a lower cost than pure coffee products and have the further characteristic of producing a beverage that has a lower caffeine content than 100% coffee beverages.
As part of the present invention, it has been found that when roasted and ground coffee is combined with an amount of conventionally roasted and ground wheat in excess of 35% by weight the brewing characteristics of the composite product are noticeably different from those of roasted and ground coffee alone. The most troublesome of the noted differences is the fact that the length of time for water to drain from the basket of drip coffee makers is markedly increased. This problem is especially evident in household automatic drip coffee makers in which the basket design requires that all water passes through a filter on the bottom of the basket. In certain instances, it has even been found that an amount of water is completely held back by the extracted bed of roasted coffee and wheat contained in the basket. The prolonged holdup of water in the basket presents a problem to the consumer who must wait an unaccustomed long period of time for thorough drainage or be faced with removing and disposing of an extremely soggy mass of roasted grounds.
The purpose of the present invention is to permit the extraction of roasted coffee-wheat products to proceed in a manner comparable to that expected by the consumer of 100% roasted coffee products.